


Things Go Awry

by siesiegirl



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Dark Castle, Fluff, Gen, Rumbelle - Freeform, Rumbelle Showdown, Rumbelle Showdown 2015
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-22
Updated: 2015-04-22
Packaged: 2018-03-25 06:31:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3800416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siesiegirl/pseuds/siesiegirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rumbelle Showdown 2015 Round 1<br/>prompts: Sore loser, Plague, Gone hilariously wrong</p>
            </blockquote>





	Things Go Awry

"Rumpelstiltskin?" Belle called through the door of his workroom, 'knocking' gently with the edge of the tray in her hands. "I brought tea." No answer came, and she sighed. He wouldn't just have _left_ her alone in the castle and gone off to perform one of his famous imbalanced 'deals,' would he? She didn't think he trusted her enough for that. 

She shifted the tray to balance carefully on one arm, and opened the door, just in time to hear him call out, "No, wait!" But it was too late.

"What in the world?" she said, nearly tripping over the mass of small, furry shapes covering the floor. One hopped over her foot.

"Rabbits," Rumpelstiltskin said, spitting the word as if it were a curse. With a flick of his hand, the door slammed shut behind her, trapping her inside with him, and them. 

"I can see they're rabbits," Belle said, and set the tray on the table, covered in books and scrolls and bottles and vials of who knew what. She bent down and scooped two up, one grey and white like a storm cloud and the other brown with floppy ears. "But what are they doing here?"

He sniffed peevishly, crossing his arms. "I conjured them, obviously."

She raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. This was obviously not the intended result of whatever he had been doing. " _Why_?" she urged.

Rumpelstiltskin pressed his lips together and his fingers twitched. "Because the translator of this spellbook," he lifted one of the books on the table and slammed it down again, causing Belle to jump and the rabbits on the floor to scurry around even faster, "doesn't know his head from a hole in the ground."

Belle tried not to laugh, she really did. But she'd never seen him so out of sorts; _the Dark One_ flustered by a room full of bunnies.

He scowled. "What's so funny?" he demanded, which only made her laugh harder.

"You're so grumpy when things don't go your way," she observed between giggles. It hadn't been funny when he'd threatened to flay Robin - why would a sorcerer like him need to do so by hand, anyway? - but she knew him a little better now, and she suspected that whole thing had only been an elaborate performance to scare her into obedience early in their... arrangement.

"I am not _grumpy_ ," he pouted, then seemed to realize how ridiculous that must look and sound, and drew composure around himself like a cloak. "The Dark One's wrath is terrible."

She sniggered. "And would you take it out on these sweet little things?" She lifted the grey and white rabbit and rubbed her cheek against its soft fur.

"Sweet?" He sneered, "They're a plague."

"They're adorable," she countered, kissing its nose.

"Well. You may... keep it, if you wish," he mumbled, and Belle thought he must be trying rather hard to look so unconcerned.

She looked at him, standing there with his practiced nonchalance, and nodded knowingly. "You can't send them back, can you?" she said, barely containing her smirk.

"What? Of course I can!" he declared. "... Just as soon as I find the original manuscript and make my own translation. Until then I don't know what needs to be undone. Any attempt might make the problem worse."

"I could help," she offered, "That sort of research sounds fascinating." Anything to escape the tedium of sweeping and dusting this entire castle, but especially the hows and whys of magic - which intrigued her now more than ever, living in the midst of it every day.

Belle thought she caught the glimmer of a smile as Rumpelstiltskin shook his head and said, "You and books."

Her own smile was unconcealed. "Is that a yes?"

"Fine, fine." He waved a hand and Belle was enveloped in red smoke. When it cleared, she saw she was in traveling clothes.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

He grinned. "It's called the Restricted Section."


End file.
